Officials to provide update on Charleston harbor deepening

ISLE OF PALMS, S.C. (AP) - Officials from the State Ports Authority and the Army Corps of Engineers are giving an update on the $300 million deepening of the Charleston Harbor shipping channel.

They speak Monday at the South Carolina International Trade Conference on the Isle of Palms.

Ports CEO Jim Newsome, Charleston District Engineer Edward Chamberlayne and State Sen. Larry Grooms on Bonneau are on the agenda.

The corps announced earlier this year that expedited studies could mean the project will be completed in 2020, instead of 2024 as originally projected. The Obama Administration has since designated the project as nationally significant, meaning another year could be shaved off the timetable.

Ports officials want the harbor deepened to 50 feet to handle larger container ships that will routinely visit when the Panama Canal is expanded.

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